


Of men and flying shoes

by Ceruleander



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Itachi is a cutiepie, M/M, Naruto is a dork, Sasuke's also a cutie, amusement park au, but an angry cutie, highschool, it starts as a roller coaster au but ends as a normal au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-04
Updated: 2015-08-29
Packaged: 2018-04-12 21:14:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4494975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ceruleander/pseuds/Ceruleander
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He would have been extremely delighted if it weren’t for the fact that the person sitting right next to him was the cause of his newfound hatred of shoes.</p><p>Or alternatively, the “I was walking by the roller coasters AND SOMEONE’S SHOE FLEW OFF AND HIT ME IN THE HEAD” AU, plus the  “sat next to each other on a roller coaster” AU. Chaptered fic.</p><p>[ON HIATUS]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Shoetastic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, people! This is my first fic for the Naruto fandom. It will be the first part of a collection of fics i’m planning to write, the majority of them being oneshots, some AUs or canon-divergence. So this is just some silly thing I really wanted to write, after seeing these AU ideas on tumblr. It was going to be a oneshot, but the lovely Baelia inspired me to write more. 
> 
> Don't mind the slight OOCness, please. The honourifics are kinda messed up cuz everyone's treating each other on a first name basis, but that's the only issue I can think of. Also, I apologise for any mistakes, I don’t have a beta ; _ ; 
> 
> Also, don’t forget to leave feedback! Please enjoy!
> 
> P.S: I edited and changed some stuff, so I recommend you to read everything again.

When he had agreed to go he knew everything would come down to this. Once again, why the fuck had he agreed? Oh yeah, Sakura had begged him non-stop for _hours_ and had even promised to buy him ramen for the rest of the month if he accepted. After that much begging -it was becoming seriously annoying, even for him- and the one in a lifetime chance of free ramen he couldn’t have possibly said no, could he? But honestly, when she mentioned why she wanted him to come (he had his suspicions), he immediately knew that he would be left behind, as the pathetic third wheel no less. Of course she wouldn’t have asked him because she _truly_ wanted him there. Nuh-huh, the one she truly wanted was her beloved Sasuke-kun, and she knew that the only way of getting him to go to the amusement park with her was to drag his loudmouthed best friend along.

Sighing, Naruto continued walking a few steps behind a very excited Sakura clinging as if her life depended on it to the arm of a very irritated Uchiha. His eyes perked up when he saw Sasuke’s face looking over his shoulder towards him, but any feeling of excitement was blown away by the ‘i’m gonna kill you for this’ that Sasuke mouthed, before his head turned away.

Noticing Sasuke’s previous movement and realizing that Naruto was interfering with her plan of seducing Sasuke with cotton candy and haunted houses, she turned her head around too and mouthed a ‘get lost’, not even giving him an apologetic look or anything for the trouble she was giving him. How rude of her!

Growling under his breath, the sixteen-year-old turned on his heels and disappeared through the crowd of people making their way towards different amusement rides. The last thing he saw of the pair was Sakura’s triumphant look and Sasuke’s panicked one upon finding out that Naruto had left him alone with the annoying pink-haired girl.

“What to do… What to do…” The blonde wondered aloud, looking around the place and walking past a queue of people waiting to take a ride on an incredibly high roller coaster. _That_ looked amazing! He had to try it, for sure.

“I’ll just have some fun, even if I was just ditched. After all, this is an amusement par-” Before he could continue talking to himself, he was interrupted by the pain of a hard object hitting him in the head and making him give a step forward because of the sheer force of the hit. The offending object bounced a couple of times before finally landing on the ground a few steps away from him. After rubbing his head, Naruto looked around at the ground trying to find the object that had disturbed his already disturbed -thanks to a certain pink haired girl- visit to the amusement park.

“What the Hell?! A fucking  _shoe_ …?!!” He shouted when his eyes landed on a totally innocent-looking shoe lying on the ground, and received a few disapproving glances from some mothers passing by who emphasized their disapproval by covering their children’s ears.

There were so many people, that no one noticed the offending shoe lying there, sprawled on the floor. Naruto spent some good five minutes sending ice-cold glares at it, as if it were his worst enemy.

Finally realizing he had spent long enough of his time directing his hate towards an inanimate object, Naruto decided it was best to look for the owner of the shoe, who was, unlike the shoe, totally 'blameable' for the visible lump swelling on his head. Besides, no one else had noticed it, which meant that there was a poor bastard out there without a shoe, and now he had the mission of delivering it back to whoever it was!

He walked towards the shoe and picked it up by the heel tab with, trying not to be grossed out. Alright, he would have to start by identifying the suspect. It was obviously a man’s shoe, and he must have been a teen or an adult because of the size. It wasn't an ugly shoe- In fact, it looked quite clean and new, thankfully. 

Sighing, Naruto went to sit on a nearby bench, where he would have a good view of the people leaving the amusement ride. The shoe had obviously fallen off someone’s foot during the ride, and said ride had yet some minutes to end. So he would wait, until a man with only one shoe came out. When the ride was over, Naruto sat upright and focused his whole attention on the people leaving the ride, but none of them were missing a shoe.

“How odd…” He murmured, knitting his eyebrows together. He turned his head to look at the shoe, which he had placed below the bench, and scrunched up his nose. “Why the Hell am I even doing this? Why is a shitty shoe stopping me from having fun? And why on earth am I talking to a shoe? You know what, shoe-san? I don’t give a fuck about what happens to you anymore, so go screw yourself!” He shouted at the shoe and stood up sharply before walking off to the roller coaster he was so happily about to ride before the damn garment decided to hit him.

He was just in time for the ride to begin, though almost everyone had already filled the seats of the cars. He rushed to the closest car with an empty seat and sat down quickly, before clasping the security belts together and getting ready for the fun. Once he was ready, he looked around excitedly at the last people getting on the ride, before looking towards his right at the person he was sitting with. His blue orbs were met with beautiful onyx orbs framed by long eyelashes, belonging to a pale and handsome raven-haired man who seemed to be somewhere in his twenties. Their eyes remained locked for a few seconds, the man regarding him stoically while Naruto fidgeted nervously, without being able to tear his eyes off him. Because the raven made no attempt to look away, his embarrassment forced him to finally look away and down at his feet. When looking down, however, he noticed something unsettling that made his head jerk back up with full speed, just as the train started moving forward. He would have been extremely delighted if it weren’t for the fact that the person sitting right next to him was the cause of his newfound hatred of shoes.

“So you’re that shoe-asshole!” He shrieked, pointing a finger at the man. Said man raised an inquiring eyebrow. 

“Pardon me?” Great, Naruto. So fucking smart. 

“You- Oh my God, your fucking shoe hit me in the head!” He continued, not realizing what he was saying until it was too late, at which point he gasped and slapped a hand over his mouth. The thought of having insulted the wrong person crossed his mind, but it couldn’t be, because then why was the man missing a shoe? Nonetheless, it was absolutely fucktastic! Shoe-asshole or not, he had just made himself look like a rude prick in front of the man!

The stranger didn’t respond though, he merely parted his lips as if he were about to speak but remained silent, slightly furrowing his brows. Soon enough, the train reached the highest point of the track, where it stopped briefly, before descending an insanely steep descent at full speed.

“Lord! We're gonna die!” Naruto screamed, forgetting about the shoe-deal. Okay, maybe he was overreacting. He heard the man make a sound; was he making fun of him? He didn’t have time to wallow in embarrassment, because he spotted a vertical loop up ahead and gasped in terror. Those always gave him a scare! The train continued descending and ascending at an incredible speed, the excited and terrified screams of the passengers echoing in the sky. He looked at the man next to him from the corner of his eye, since now that he thought of it he hadn’t heard him voice any excitement or fear -much less scream-, only to see his eyes shut close. Before he could evaluate the man’s reaction, the train reached the base of the loop and ascended the steep curve, passing by it so fast that Naruto didn’t even have time to regret getting on the ride, though that didn’t mean he didn’t let a scream or two past his lips. He could feel the hairs hanging from his head at that delicious but terrifying point of the loop where they were completely upside down, and closed his eyes to save himself from the scare of the inverted sight of the amusement park. The man had yet to scream, but Naruto could see him gripping the bar as if his life depended on it, his knuckles turning white. Naruto’s eyes widened when he heard the man gasp for the first time, and looked up front to see the reason for that: a huge vertical double loop.

“Holy fuck!” He shouted in anticipation, just when the train started ascending. When they passed by the highest point and the speedy descent started, Naruto felt the hands of the man gripping his arm and clinging to it with dear life. Surprised, he looked at him and saw that his eyes were wide open -it was funny, on the man even that expression looked only remotely shaken. 

After a few more turns, descents and loops, the train slowed down until it completely halted, and the passengers started walking out of the cars. Naruto could still feel the man’s grip on his arm, and looked at him with raised eyebrows. The man said nothing and averted his eyes, his still unreadable and impassive expression disturbed by a slight coloration on his pale features. Sooner than the blonde found himself wishing, the man took his hands away and stood up slowly before walking out of the car, lifting his leg slightly so that his unshod foot didn’t touch the floor. But before the raven could straighten his clothes he was attacked by a blonde guy with a ponytail who threw himself at him and squeezed him in a killer bear-hug.

“Heey Itachi! Let’s do it again, hm!” The weird blonde exclaimed, explosive excitement colouring his words. He didn't know if it was his imagination, but he swore he heard the raven-haired man groan.

“Deidara-san… we’ve already done this five times.” The man spoke, trying to break free from the embrace whilst attempting to keep his leg lifted up, but the blonde only held him tighter. At first sight one must think they were in some kind of relationship... but it seriously didn't look like it, Naruto mused as he tilted his head to the side curiously, observing the exchange. 

Another man soon appeared, a pale almost creepily doll-like redhead with a blank expression. “Deidara, leave him. Let’s go.”

"You heard your boyfriend, Deidara-san." Oh. So the blonde was the redhead's boyfriend? The first thing that came to his mind was 'weird match'. On another note, Naruto seriously wondered how the man could remain so calm while having an hyperactive and explosive sunshine ball annoying the fuck out of him. If he did that to Sasuke, no wonder the boy would punch him, or at least recite him some of his most colourful insults. That didn't mean he hadn't  _tried._

The blonde completely ignored the raven and squeezed harder. “Come on, I can tell you still haven’t gotten over it. I can smell your fear! Let’s try again, hm!” Finally, the man managed to break away by elbowing the blonde and hopping forward.

“I can assure you, I’m well over it now. In fact, I was over it after the second ride.”

“Gentlemen.” One of the people of the staff said, drawing their attention. “Please get in one of the cars or leave.”

The blonde tried to keep the raven in place by pulling him by the arm but the man was stronger, and started walking away, dragging the blonde with him. “Argh! Sasori, do something!” Of course, the redhead did nothing, and they walked out of the ride with the blonde still attached to the man’s arm.

Meanwhile, Naruto just stood there, looking at the display of something he could totally relate to. He couldn’t help to be reminded of himself and Sasuke. No, seriously, looking at the pair was like getting a glimpse of their future selves. However, it was getting a bit awkward, because he followed the trio a few steps behind, wondering what to do. Apparently, the man had forgotten about him, even though he had insulted him before the ride. Eh, he should just leave. The raven was obviously busy with other things –and people-, and the whole shoe deal was simply none of his business. Though he felt a bit guilty, because he knew where the shoe was and he somehow felt responsible for it…and he really didn’t want to miss the opportunity of speaking to such a handsome man.

As he turned on his heels after walking through the exit, he was stopped by the voice of the raven.

“Excuse me?”

Turning around, he faced the man and tried to hide his panic with a smile. “Yeah?”

“Could you wait for a minute, please?" The man looked at him with those pretty onyx orbs of his. Naruto couldn't help but nod dumbly and mutter an "Um, sure."

Hopping forward, the man sent him a questioning look. "You said something about a shoe before the ride, didn’t you?” He emphasized his question by awkwardly pointing at his unshod foot. And of course, he didn't mention anything about the insult the blonde had thrown at him.

“Oh! Yeah, yeah…I-”

“Who’s that cutie, hm?” The hyper-blonde interrupted him, looking at Naruto up and down with a knowing smirk.

"I-" 

"Hmm... I knew you liked them young, but not _that_  young." 

If his face was slightly coloured before, now he was certain it was  _completely_ red. He resisted the urge of covering his face with his hands, and merely averted his eyes at the insinuation. _Great_ , way to make the situation a thousand times more awkward! 

Ignoring his blonde friend, the raven looked at the redhead. “Sasori-san, why don’t you take Deidara-san to the haunted house?” Nodding without a word of objection, the redhead grabbed Deidara by the sleeve and dragged him away. Naruto didn’t have time to think about how weird the pair was, because the man’s voice was directed at him once again.

"Forgive him, he might be very childish sometimes." 

"I think _very_ is an understatement... And for your information, I'm not that young." He muttered with a slight pout, his gaze stuck on the ground. What he had said came out awfully childish, ironically.

"That's arguable."

Scowling, Naruto crossed his arms. "I'm sixteen! That's no way young!" He refuted, lifting his gaze off the floor and locking eyes with the man once again. 

Chuckling, the man shook his head. "I'm afraid that for us, you are indeed young." 

"Wait, you're saying that as if you were some kind of geezer or something! You can't be more than 20..." 

"I'm actually 22." 

"I was quite close!" 

"Congratulations." The man replied, his lips pulling up slightly. 

"Hey, don't mock me!"

"I'm not mocking you." The man assured, flicking his wrist. 

"Either way, I win!" He exclaimed triumphantly. 

"You won? I hadn't realized we were in some sort of competition." The raven smirked slightly, but sighed after seeing the blonde's happy expression. “I guess I can't argue with you there, then." 

"Yatta!" The boy cheered, spinning around happily without a care in the world, completely forgetting about the shoe deal. 

"Anyways. You were saying?" 

Naruto halted and scratched his head, squinting his eyes. "I was saying...what?" 

"About my shoe." The raven supplied. "I'm getting quite tired of standing on only one leg, after all." 

“Oh, um, yeah, sorry!" The blonde barked out, remembering why he was talking to the man in the first place. "Well, you see, I was walking by the roller coasters and then suddenly a goddamn shoe fell on my head!” He paused for dramatic effect and gestured wildly towards the sky, and then made the motion of something hitting his head. “See? Right here!” He jumped towards the man and leaned forward slightly, pointing at the visible lump on his head.

A guilty look swept past the older man's features, as Naruto laughed nervously and waved his hands furiously. “But don’t worry! That thing could’ve never harmed me! I’m way stronger, you see!” He giggled, noticing the man’s lips pull up slightly.

“I’m honestly relieved. What a ridiculous thing to happen, I'm really sorry, I should compensate you.” The man sighed, rubbing his temples. “Let me-“

“No no, it’s alright! Really.” Naruto assured, cutting him off. 

“Well, if you insist."

"...Yeah." The boy scratched his head for the millionth time. What now? It had surely turned awkward. 

"So, do you happen to know where my shoe is?” The man looked at him expectantly. Naruto immediately felt the urge to hit himself on the head with a hammer. Of course! Goddamnit, how stupid could he be? 

“Ah! Well… I… Don't…” He trailed off.

“Are you saying you threw it away?”

“No!" The man raised an eyebrow, yet again. "Maybe! I don't know. Just- Wait here.” Naruto shot off, running off towards the bench where the shoe was -hopefully- lying about. 

A couple of minutes later, Naruto appeared through the crowd of people, with the shoe in his hand. Along the way, he had been stared at weirdly by the people passing by. It had been embarrassing, but at least the shoe was where he had left it.

“Here it is! All safe and sound.” He chuckled once he was close enough, handing the shoe back to the man, who put it back on immediately.

“By the way..." He trailed off, looking for something smart to say. "Nice... shoe.” He finished dumbly as he awkwardly rubbed his arm, feeling as the most stupid creature on the face of earth.

"If I can recall correctly, you were quite angry at it, and at me." The raven paused, brushing a lock of hair off his forehead. "As you so kindly called me, what was it? Oh, yes, 'shoe-asshole', wasn't it?" 

Laughing awkwardly, Naruto bit his lip. Well, _fuck_. He knew his loud-fucking-mouth would get the better of him at some point. At least the man didn't seem to be mad or anything, if only, he seemed to be teasing him.

"Well, yeah, I'm sorry for that, I was kinda angry and surprised."

"Figures."

Smiling, Naruto shook his head. "But honestly, they're very nicely done. I love the design." 

“Thank you, though they're not as great as they look. Or in any case, it seems I got them one size too big.” Naruto laughed in agreement, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Maybe you should give them back and ask for a smaller size... To avoid another incident like this, you know?"

The man nodded, lowering his head in guilt once again. “I am terribly sorry for the trouble, and I wish to apologize to you properly, especially since you were hurt and you still took the trouble of returning the shoe to me.”

“Ah.. no worries, seriously, I-”

“Moreover, I’m sorry for suddenly grabbing your arm during the ride. I’m just slightly scared of heights.”

“Oh.” Naruto breathed out, finally understanding the whole conversation he heard involving the hyperactive blonde. How weird, he would have never imagined a man like him being scared of anything at all.

"You mean that the weird blonde guy made you ride five times? That's mental." 

"Yes, I agree." The man chuckled. "According to him, the best way of getting over your fears is facing them... I personally don't agree, though I can't say it didn't help me." 

“I still can’t believe that your shoe flew off, I mean, how on earth does that happen?” The blonde mused, amusement colouring his words. However, as soon as he said that, the raven's expression was tinted with guilt once again. 

“Please, let me-“

“You really don’t have to.” Naruto cut him off, not wanting to be a nuisance. "You probably should go meet back with your friends." 

“Oh, my bad, you surely have somewhere else to be, right?”

Naruto quickly shook his head –maybe a bit too quickly-, not wanting the man to think he wanted to get rid of him, either. 

“No!” he shot out, as the man raised an eyebrow. “…I mean, no, in fact…I really have nothing to do, I was ditched by my two friends because they wanted some alone time...” He scowled at the thought of Sakura and Sasuke having fun without him, but surprisingly it didn't anger him as much as he thought it would.

The man actually snorted at that, before smirking. “I just ditched my friends, how ironic.” He commented amusedly, rubbing his chin with his thumb. Then, his eyes lit up, the smirk widening.

“I have troubled you enough and I still haven’t apologized properly." He stepped forward. "Say, would you mind if I treated you to some ice cream?”

Was he hearing what he just heard? Naruto blinked a few times, making sure the man in front of him was real. Holy fuck.

“Oh! Um, yes."

The man raised an eyebrow, just as Naruto noticed his stupid mistake. "Oh damn, I mean no, of course I wouldn't mind! I’d love to. And then we could maybe go to the teacups...” He trailed off, looking up at the man. 

“Absolutely.” The man smiled –yes, _smiled_. Holy shit. “I’m Itachi, by the way. Though you already know that.” 

“Pleasure, Itachi-san." The blond replied with a chuckle. "I’m Naruto.” He finished, smiling brightly. Maybe coming to the amusement park wasn’t so bad, after all.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo, yeah. That was kinda silly.  
> I'm sorry if it was too short. Don't worry, there will be more chapters. I hope you enjoyed!


	2. Oh boy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo hello people! Another chapter of this fic, huh. Even I wasn’t expecting that. But the lovely Baelia helped me get inspired, and all that stuff. Sooo here it is! 
> 
> Please enjoy!

The bright lights of the attractions shone through the darkness of the night, painting the amusement park in vibrant shades of color and liquid beauty. The smell of cotton candy, sweets and ice cream lingered in the air, accompanied by the voices of the numerous families and children strolling through the park, laughing heartily, with joyous smiles plastered on their faces.

“So ramen is your favorite food?” Looking to his side at Itachi, Naruto smiled brightly and nodded, his eyes shining with excitement. He got really excited whenever his favorite food came up in conversations, now in particular because it was the older man who had incited the conversation. He was glad to be in someone else's company, he dreaded having to spend the whole evening in the park alone while his friends had fun. So far, they had talked about random stuff, gone to many fun and exciting attractions, eaten almost every kind of food available in the park, and played a variety of carnival games where they won an assortment of prizes ranging from a teddy bear to a traditional Japanese spoon. They had gotten rid of them along the way, though Naruto insisted on staying with the spoon, because according to him it was perfect for ramen, and that was how they ended up talking about said food.

“Yup! I love ramen, it’s sooo good! I would even marry it!” At the man’s chuckle, Naruto rubbed his neck embarrassedly. “Not really, of course...” He clarified, mentally hitting himself for saying such a stupid thing.

“I understand you perfectly, don’t worry.”

Naruto’s eyes widened, and he stepped closer to the man, making him halt. “You mean you also share a fervent and socially misunderstood love for ramen?”

The man laughed before shaking his head, and leaned away from the boy. “No, I meant that I understand your undying and ardent love for food. Though in my case, it’s tea.”

Naruto’s mouth formed an ‘o’ shape and he stepped back, slightly disappointed. “Where should we go next?” he asked, shrugging it off, as they continued walking.

“We should visit the haunted house.” The raven suggested, looking down at the map of the amusement park. “You aren’t scared easily, are you?” Naruto looked up thoughtfully. Now that he thought about it... He didn't know. He had never been to a haunted house before, not because he was easily frightened but because he had never had the chance to. What should he say? He couldn't let the man think he was a coward, could he?

“Nah, not really. It should be fun!” Smiling, the blonde looked up at the sky. The sun had set a long while ago and the park was now full of people, and each time more and more couples could be seen walking around, holding hands and smiling at each other. The air even smelt like caramel and melted love. _They look so happy_ , Naruto thought, as he looked from the corner of his eyes at Itachi, who was looking around and trying to find the haunted house with narrowed eyes, probably because of the intensity of the lights. What did other people think of them? Did they think they were really good friends? Or maybe a couple? That was something he couldn’t help to wonder, though it was kind of weird. Looking down at the floor, Naruto sighed, a pink tinge of coloration staining his cheeks at the thought of him and the older man being in a sort of date. Well, they were in one, weren’t they? That was undeniable… right? Though it was stupid to think that, since they had only met mere hours ago, and they were in some kind of mutual agreement for not wasting their visit to the amusement park and not looking like pathetic loners after being ditched by their friends (though the older man had kinda gotten himself into that situation by himself.)

“Oh, there it is.”

The haunted house was a spooky sight, with scary-looking gargoyles, cobwebs and bloodstains splattered on the walls. But that was kinda obvious; it was a haunted house, after all. He remembered Sakura exclaiming excitedly that she wanted to go there, no doubt to feign fear and force Sasuke to ‘protect’ her. Hugging and clinging obnoxiously would be part of the package, of course. He would have been excited, if he hadn’t known Sakura’s dark plan. He wondered where they were at the moment; had they left already? Had they missed him, or even worried about where he was? Maybe Sasuke had, he was his best friend after all. But Sakura most likely hadn’t- no, she was probably having the time of her life. He shuddered at the thought of Sakura leading (– _cough, kidnapping_ -) Sasuke to a bathroom stall and doing _naughty things_ to him. Poor Sasuke.

“Are you alright?” Itachi asked worriedly. “You suddenly grew pale. Don’t you want to go in?”

“No, no. I’m aright, don’t worry." He laughed it off nervously. "I just remembered something disturbing.” The man raised a perfect eyebrow, but shrugged it off and walked towards the entrance.

Catching up to him, Naruto locked his hands behind his neck and grinned. “What about you?”

“Besides from a..." The man started, trailing off, and Naruto raised an eyebrow. " _Slight_ fear of heights, I really don’t think I get scared easily.”

The boy snorted. “Nah, I bet’cha will get so scared you’ll scream in horror at the tiniest sound or movement!”

Itachi halted momentarily just after walking through the entrance, and turned slowly to the blonde. “You will take back your words, you’ll see.” He smirked as he stared at him dead in the eyes, a look not far from a provocation. For a second, Naruto thought that nothing inside the house could be scarier than Itachi's glare. 

Gulping, Naruto followed suit and stepped inside. There was a person with inhumanly wide eyes and a smile stretching out his face sitting behind a counter, dressed in bellhop clothes, who warned them that once in, they would have to do the full course until they reached the exit.  Naruto nodded quickly, dismissing the warning, and darted forwards into the first room with Itachi following closely behind.

It was dark and extremely chilly –the heater had been probably set awfully low-, not to mention there was a strange sound in the distance, like deaf screams or hollow voices.

“Oh _God..._ I can’t see anything.”

He suddenly felt fingers on his arm and jumped on instinct, before letting out a shriek.

“Don’t worry, it’s just me.” He heard the man’s clear voice through the dark, and sighed in relief. He could also hear the man breathing, and soon heard him chuckling. “It seems you’re a bit scared, aren’t you?”

“N-no! Of course not!” He refuted, crossing his arms and stepping forward. Wow, he sounded _so_ convincing. “Either way, this is not supposed to be so dark, how are we going to know where to go?”

“Naruto-kun, that’s the point. We should _not_ know where to go. The house will guide us.”

Just when he was going to complain, they heard a loud thud coming from one of the walls, and then footsteps approaching them. In the distance, they saw a dim light bursting to life, glowing inconsistently in the darkness of the house, and illuminating a corridor just enough for them to know that that was their way to go.

“Oh no, _nope_. No way I’m going there.”

“I thought you said you weren’t scared easily?” The man pointed out, knitting his brows.

“Well, I guess? I really am not scared easily.” Naruto shrugged. “But I don't know, I’ve never been to a haunted house before...”

The light had become a bit brighter, only enough for him to make out Itachi’s sharp and beautiful features, eerily fitting with the darkness coating the room and the soft gleams of light falling on his face and hair. His expression seemed to soften, and he approached the blonde with quiet steps.

“It’s alright… don’t be scared.” He softly said, reassuringly. Naruto just poker-faced. He wasn't scared! He had just been surprised. Man, he wanted to drown in his own embarrassment. Why was Itachi treating him like a scared child?

"Now come, we have to move if we want to find the exit.” Grabbing Naruto by the sleeve, he turned on his heels and walked off, with the boy following closely behind. They reached the end of the corridor, where they saw a big wooden door that emitted a chirping creak before being pushed open by some invisible force. They walked inside another room a bit more illuminated than the previous one, decorated with antique furniture and unsettling portrays of people dressed in fancy clothes, their eyes wide and sharp, following the pair through the room.

“Wow. Those dudes’ eyes give me the creeps.”

“Are you scared?” Itachi asked, stepping closer to him.

“No way that would scare me, ha-ha...ha..!”

The blonde was screaming internally, not because of fear but because of embarrassment. Holy fuck. Not only had he made himself look like a chickenhearted kitten, but he had also made himself look stupid and hotheaded. Oh well, whatever. More internal screams ensued when his eyes travelled down to Itachi’s grip on his sleeve. Holy fucking Hell, he felt like Sakura in that moment, like a pathetic 12 year old. Though probably he had more luck than Sakura, since her wish of being ‘protected’ by Sasuke in the haunted house would never be granted, while his kinda was… Though it wasn’t a wish, _per se_.

“Itachi-san, I think you don’t need to do that anymore…” he trailed off, blushing slightly. “I’m all right.”

The older man let go, and Naruto found himself regretting it. “If you say so-”

A loud, high-pitched scream resonated through the room, cutting off the man’s sentence, just before a ragged, bloodied monster appeared out of nowhere, making Naruto scream in return and lunge forward to grab a hold of the nearest thing in his perimeter – which so happened to be Itachi.

“ _Yoooo_ what the Hell is that thing!” He yelped, ducking his head and resting it on the man’s shoulder so that he wouldn’t have to look at the monster.

“Shh, calm down, it’s nothing.” The raven patted Naruto’s back soothingly. “See, it’s even bad-quality.” The man pointed at the monster as Naruto slowly lifted his head and looked at the figure. If one looked closely, cardboard could be seen sticking out of the monster’s ‘flesh’ and there were some unpainted areas.

“Oh, they must’ve been on a low budget.” He laughed awkwardly, mentally hitting himself _again_ for being such a coward. Realising he was still gripping the man, he dumbly released hold of his arm and whispered, “Sorry”.

The man smiled knowingly at him, remembering how they had been in the opposite situation just hours ago. “I see you returned the favour." Itachi muttered and the blonde smiled back as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, yeah. You did it first, though!" 

Itachi chuckled silently, solemnly. "True. Now let’s go."

 

They spent about half an hour inside the haunted house. After traveling through some rooms, Naruto stopped getting scared of every thing that would jump out of nowhere, and instead would merely flinch, not because of fear anymore but because of surprise. He was honestly amazed by the man’s control; he never flinched or seemed to be affected by the hellish figures and sounds coming through the walls. The same happened when they were in the roller coaster, which was highly impressive, since Itachi had admitted being scared of heights. 

Though his lack of response to the various attempts to scare them was understandable; the figures weren’t even scary, they were so lame that it was funny. And so, he had also started laughing with the man about the low quality of the figures, especially whenever something painfully obvious came to sight.

At some point during the course when it was too dark to see, Naruto had grabbed onto Itachi’s hand, and they had just remained like that for the rest of the course without commenting on it or showing signs of discomfort. It felt warm and nice, Naruto decided.

Soon, they walked through one last corridor before finally reaching the exit of the house. They pushed the door open and walked outside, immediately shielding their eyes with their palms because of the intense light of the lampposts and various attractions.

“Well, that was fun.” Naruto grinned, taking in some fresh air after being inside the attraction for such a long time.

“In the end, it was you who got so scared as to scream in horror at the tiniest sound or movement.” The man said, smirking. “Just as I said you would.”

“…You just quoted me. That’s not fair.” The boy pouted, knitting his brows.

“Life’s not fair.”

“Don’t use that as an argument!” He shot out.

“Don’t use that as a counter argument.” The man chuckled in return.

“…Touché.” He sheepishly mumbled, rubbing his neck with his free hand and laughing, just as Itachi turned on his heels and started walking away, dragging him along by pulling on their locked hands.

“H-hey, where are we going?” He asked, trying to catch up to the raven’s pace, managing so after a few steps.  

“Are you hungry?” The man looked over his shoulder at him, ignoring the people passing by, his eyes gleaming against the dark night.

“No, not really-” he objected, just as his tummy grumbled. “Well, maybe just a bit.”

“We should get something to eat. It’s still early.”  Just when Naruto was about to agree, the ring of a cellphone disrupted the atmosphere, making Itachi halt. A look of worry swept through his features.

“Excuse me for a second.” He pulled his hand away from the blonde’s and took out his phone, flipping it open and pressing it to his ear.

“Hello?”

An explosive, loud voice was heard on the other end of the line, and some screams could be heard, muffled in the distance.

“Deidara-san? What’s the matter?”

More shouts and screams ensued, and it sounded as if the hyper-blonde known as Deidara was hyperventilating.

“Is something wro- oh.”

Silence. 

“I understand. I’ll be there soon.”

Naruto didn’t understand what was happening, it was so sudden and out of place; and so he stood there, with a confused expression adorning his features. The man hanged up soon after and turned to him, a blank expression on his face.

“I’m sorry, I need to leave.” And with those words, it was as if the world had come crashing down in front of him. Not really... But yeah, something like that. 

“It’s alright. I understand. So...” He trailed off, unsure of what to say next. Were they going to exchange phone numbers or something? They would, right? Because they had spent a great time together, right? That's what people who meet and want to see again do… And they definitely wanted to see each other again, right? Right? _Right?!_

Sighing, the man rubbed his temples, before approaching him slowly and pulling up his lips into a smile.

“I had a great time, thank you Naruto-kun. I'm sorry.”

Naruto stared at him dumbly, confused, with his mouth slightly open. And soon, he felt warm lips softly pressed to his cheek, as a blush started spreading across his features. The man pulled away, and just as unexpectedly, turned on his heels and left, mixing himself with the crowd of people making their way through the park.

The blonde was left standing there, dumbstruck, with an ache on his cheek, the ghost of the kiss still lingering on his flesh. He lifted his hand and touched the skin, not quite believing what had just happened. Okay, _no_ , he wasn’t talking about the kiss –well, yeah, but that wasn’t _really_ what mattered. He was talking about the man’s sudden Cinderella-like retreat. It made no _fucking_ sense.

And so, he expressed his confusion through the most eloquent and original word he could come up with: “Whaaaaaaat?!”  

 

-[x]-

 

“So you’re telling me you spent the time of your life with a handsome, smart, and older dude who took you on a makeshift date through the amusement park while I was suffering, tied up and psychologically scarred by a lunatic pink-haired chick who’s obsessed with me?”

Naruto nodded slowly, staring blankly at him.

“And you didn’t even ask for his fucking surname!?”

“…Ugh, he didn’t ask for mine either so…?”

“I can’t deal with this shit.”  The young raven deadpanned as he stood up, grabbing his backpack from the table and walking off to the lockers. Math class had just ended, and there were countless sleep-deprived and tired students strolling through the hallways as if they were zombies, complaining about having to come to school so early and moaning about hating Mondays with a fierce passion.

“Wait, teme! What the fuck does that mean?”

“Shut up, dobe.”

“Don’t tell me to shut up!”

Turning around in the middle of the crowded hallway, Sasuke glared at his blonde friend and gritted his teeth. “You forced me to go to the amusement park.”

“Yes, I did, so?”

“With Sakura.”

“Aha…?” The blonde squinted his eyes, scrunching up his nose.

“And you dared to leave!”

“Oh…”

“I’m gonna kill you!” The boy flinched. He could swear he saw the word ‘murder’ spelled across the young raven’s eyes.

“W-why!?”

“Why, you ask? You left me alone with her while you ran off with some random dude! She almost _ate_ me!”

Naruto looked at him with knitted eyebrows, crossing his arms. “I’m... sorry?”

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. “Why the fuck do you sound so unsure?”

“Well, I honestly don’t see how what happened to you is a bad thing, compared to me…”

“Idiot!” Rubbing his temples, Sasuke turned towards his own locker and opened it after twisting the numbers in the lock. “Of course you don’t get it!” He continued, groaning, as he took out his Biology textbook and shoved in his Math copybook, before closing his locker with a slam. “You were enjoying yourself while I was being mentally _violated_!”

“What exactly did she do to you?” Naruto inquired, curiosity painted on his face.

“I don’t want to talk about it. It was traumatic.”

“...Alright, yeah, but you’re forgetting that I’m in a miserable position right now-”

“-Oh, really? You don’t _say_ -”

“-because I won’t see him again, ever. You know what that means right?”

Sasuke face-palmed before elbowing Naruto, making the boy look up from the shell of self-pity he had created around himself. “Of course I do. It serves you right, because you know, it’s totally your fault.”

Naruto wailed, lifting his arms up in frustration. “You don’t have to remind me! I don’t know how I didn’t ask for his name or number, or something! Argh!”

Sasuke grunted, passing by him and leaving towards the Biology classroom. “Get over it already. Maybe he didn’t want to see you again.”

Naruto followed him, trying to catch up to his pace, a hurt expression on his face. “How can you say that to me? It's not helping!”

“Oh, I don’t know, how could you leave me alone with her?” Sasuke retorted.

“I’m sorry, okay? Just forget it, will you?”

After a long pause, the young raven sighed. “Fine. But I’m still gonna kill you.”

“But you just said you would forget it!” Sasuke merely blinked at the blonde. “Okay look, I won’t leave you with Sakura alone ever again. I promise.” He finished, sighing.

“…You better keep that promise, you hear me?”

“Yeah, yeah.” He shrugged. “But- Aaarhg!” He groaned again, covering his eyes with his palms. “I can’t believe it! He was perfect! And I was so stupid! How could I-”

“Naruto. Shut the fuck up already. Now hurry up, or we’ll never hear the end of it from Orochimaru-sensei.”

-

Class went out smoothly, though per usual Orochimaru-sensei creeped the fuck out of them with his hissing voice; especially Sasuke, who swore the pale and yellow-eyed teacher had some weird, sick obsession with him (and little boys, for that matter). Oh well, he wouldn’t be the first one. After the bell rang, the pair walked off towards the cafeteria, where an excited Sakura approached them with a giant smile on her face.

“Sasuke-kun! Hey! How are you?” She greeted. “Did you enjoy our date?” At the mention of the word ‘date’, Naruto visibly deflated, remembering the previous night’s occurrences, and started murmuring regretfully. 

“It wasn’t a date, Sakura.”

“If you look up the definition of a date and compare it to what we did…” Sasuke had stopped listening by that point, walking away towards the cafeteria line, leaving his two friends (more like his friend and his fangirl) behind.

“Um, so, Sakura-chan. Remember our deal?” Naruto poked her shoulder before she could leave off towards Sasuke, reminding her of the deal that had fueled everything. Even if he had been ditched by his friends and then kinda ditched again by the man, something good had come out of it… Free ramen for a whole month!

“Oh, yeah. Here.” She rummaged through her bag before taking out a package of instant ramen.

Squealing, Naruto jumped up and down after taking it from her hands, and then pressed it to his chest in a hug. “Sakura-chan, thank you~.” He said, a happy expression on his face. “So you’re gonna be buying these for a whole month, huh?”

The pink-haired girl looked at him weirdly, tilting her head. “A month? Are you crazy?”

This time, it was Naruto who looked at her quizzically. “W-what do you mean? The deal was-”

“The deal was for a week, Naruto. Not a month!”

“What?!” He shouted in shock. “No way! It was a month! I remember!”

Sakura crossed her arms and turned her head away. “How could it be a month, are you dumb? No way I’d spend my money on you like that.”

“B-but it was a deal!” He complained, pressing a hand against his head and pulling on his hair. “And you told me to leave you and Sasuke alone, which I did! You should be grateful-”

“Are you calling me a liar?” Sakura raised her voice, glaring at him, an intimidating look on her face. Naruto felt a chill run through his spine. The girl was fucking scary. No one fucked with Sakura, _ever_ , or else they’d be met with her fists. She was a strong, intelligent, independent woman. But she could be very,  _very_ childish and immature when it came to Sasuke. Naruto couldn't understand why she was still obsessed with him, after how he treated her. 

Smiling nervously at her, the blonde raised his palm up in defense. “N-no! I’m not! It’s alright, a week then…!” He laughed, trying to dissipate the tension, and then waved before turning around and running off to a table.

After sitting down, he tried to forget about Sakura and focused his whole attention on the ramen pack in front of him. He removed the lid with care, his eyes shining with excitement and adoration. Okay, even if it was only for a week, free ramen was still free ramen. Once open, Naruto raised the package to his face and inhaled the scent, closing his eyes after the sweet smell entered his nostrils. Soon after Sasuke joined him, having returned with a tray of food from the cafeteria - which was really good, but also fucking expensive. They sat together in silence, enjoying their food, every now and then talking about how the soccer team had won last week’s tournament, or how much they hated Math class, or how urgent the English project they had to do was – and they hadn’t even started, thanks to a certain blonde.

They finished their lunch and left the cafeteria, arriving at their English class early. They sat down next to each other as usual, before Sasuke took out a book and started reading, while Naruto took out a notebook and started doodling random stuff. However, he cursed when he remembered that they had homework, which he hadn’t done.

“Fuck! I didn’t do the homework! Shit shit shit.” He shouted, hitting himself in the face. Then he looked at Sasuke who was calmly reading his book, and leaned closer to him. “Can you let me copy yours?”

“No.”

“Aww come on! I’m gonna die! Please!” He begged, leaning over even more.

Without a word, Sasuke reached for his copybook and angrily shoved it into Naruto’s face, pushing the boy away.

“Thnwks.” The boy said, his voice muffled by the copybook pressed onto his face. “Awnd I’d apwriciate it if ywou twook that outta my fwace.” The young raven released hold of the copybook and went back to reading, not before grumbling some profanities.

After copying down the answers into his own copybook, Naruto looked over at Sasuke, who was now scrolling through his phone lazily. Suddenly, the young raven’s eyes widened, and he raised a hand to his head. “Shit.”

“Sasuke?” The blonde asked, at which the boy only growled.

“Don’t ignore me! What’s wrong?” Naruto shot out again, concerned.

“Everything.” Came out the raven’s monotonous reply.

“Alright, why not be a bit more specific?” He tried to lean over and take a look at the screen, but Sasuke moved the phone away.

“Shut up.”

“And we’re a this again.” Naruto commented, going back to his notebook and drawing a line on the paper. “Just lemme see what you saw. Is it a nude? Judging by your reaction-“

“Shut up! No, it’s not a nude, you fucking pervert. It’s just a text from my brother.”

Naruto mouthed an ‘oh’ and went back to drawing. However, realisation hit him and he turned sharply towards Sasuke with a surprised expression and raised eyebrows.

“You have a brother?!”

“…Yes?”

“Why- how didn’t I know! Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You never asked.” The older boy replied calmly.

“What!" Sasuke didn't answer.

Indignantly, Naruto raised a palm to his chest. "You mean that if I don’t ask you stuff, you won’t tell me? So you could be a drag queen, an undercover agent or the lover of a 50-year-old mafia boss for all I know!”

“No, stupid. I do tell you stuff, but only stuff that’s important.”

Naruto growled, complaining about trust and friendship under his breath.

“Oh just shut up.”

“It seems that’s the only thing you say to me these days.” The blonde crossed his arms and turned his back to the boy.

“Stop being so immature.”

“No.”

Sighing, Sasuke shrugged. “Okay, do as you wish.”

“Grr! Alright, alright. Whatever.” Naruto said, turning back to face the boy. In that moment, the bell rang and students started making their way into the classroom, sitting down and initiating conversations with each other. Soon, the teacher arrived, and told everyone to shut up.

“So, how are you doing with the project?” Asuma-sensei’s clear voice sounded across the classroom, and soon the smell of cigarettes filled the room.

“I take it that you haven’t done much, huh?”

Sasuke shot daggers at Naruto and mouthed a ‘your fault’, as low whispers emerged throughout the room.

“You still have a week, no worries.”  Asuma-sensei dismissed the topic, with a grin on his face.

Shikamaru raised his hand and was signaled to speak. “Sensei, I don’t think a week is enough-“

“A week is sure enough for such a petty project. Now let’s move on, open your textbook on page 38…”

 

-[x]-

 

The bell indicating the end of the school day rang throughout the school, snatching the tired and miserable students out of their unhappy and stressed slumber. A smile stretched their features; it was time for celebration: Friday 3 o’clock, the happiest moment of the week.

The week had gone smoothly, with nothing to worry about except for the occasional tests here and there. Naruto had wailed every day though, regretful and frustrated, and no amount of shut ups or hits could make him get over his bullshit. At least the free ramen that Sakura bought him every day kept him content enough to not be a nuisance.

“Fucking finally! I can go home!” Naruto exclaimed, rising from his seat and leaving the classroom in a daze, followed by a bored-looking Sasuke, who halted Naruto’s movement by holding him by the rim of his shirt.

“Not so fast, Naruto. You’re coming over, remember?”

“Ah, oh.” Naruto deflated, his arms hanging from his body like a rag doll. “Right. The project. I almost forgot.” The blonde scratched his head. They had agreed to do the project in Sasuke’s house during the weekend, and Naruto would spend the night there, as he used to do in other occasions.

“At least your parents are picking us up.” He added, as an afterthought. Sasuke’s house was in the posh-y area of the city, which meant that it was a bit far from the rest of society, while Naruto’s house was only some blocks away from the school. Walking to the young raven's house had been the craziest thing Naruto had done. Okay, not really, but you get the idea. They always opted to go to Sasuke’s house despite its isolation, since it was obviously cooler and bigger, hands down.

Releasing the blonde and walking off towards the lockers, Sasuke shook his head. “No, they’re out for the weekend. We’ll have to take the metro.”

“Damn.” He groaned. “Alright, I’ll text Iruka to let him know I’ll be staying at your place.” The boy reached for his phone and unlocked it, but was stopped by Sasuke’s voice.

“You haven’t told him already? I told you on Tuesday.”

“…No.” He muttered, writing the text and pressing ‘send’. “I forgot.”

“So typical of you.”

“What does that mean!”

Smirking, Sasuke threw his backpack over his shoulder before closing his locker and walking towards the exit. “Nothing.”

Growling, Naruto followed Sasuke out of the school. Soon, they walked down into a subway station a few blocks away.

“Hey, so it’ll be just us, huh? Your folks are never out. We could trash the house or invite people over, you know, party and stuff.”

“No.”

“Why not?” The blonde demanded as he passed his student card through the reader.

“Because we have a fucking project to do. And because my brother’s home.”

“Oh.” Naruto rubbed his chin, mindfully. “Right. Speaking about that, why is he there?"

"Did you just ask why my brother  _exists_?"

"Of course not! Wow that sounds awful." He scratched his head. "I mean, I’ve never seen him at your place before… you know… I didn’t even know you had one! Mikoto-san didn’t even mention him, either. No portraits, no nothing...”

Sasuke tapped his foot impatiently against the floor, looking over at the tunnel for any sign of the metro’s arrival. “Well, have you noticed any portraits _at all_ in my house?"

"Hm, you're right. Your folks have always been pretty simple-minded, haven't they?"

"Hn." Soon, they heard the sound of the metro arriving. “Fucking finally.” They muttered, and soon the boys made their way inside, luckily finding spare seats.

"I don't have portraits at home either..." Naruto muttered, on a slightly more somber note.

"Yes you do, Iruka has made sure there are plenty. Stop being so dumb."

"Oh! You're right! I had forgotten completely, hehe." He giggled, as Sasuke face-palmed. Seriously, Naruto couldn't even get any more stupid. 

"Hey, so why is your brother home. Or why _wasn't_ he before?" 

"Tch. Why are you asking so many questions?"

"I'm just curious. How would you react if I suddenly told you I had a sister?"

"I wouldn't give a fuck." Sasuke hissed, a frown forming its way into his pretty face.

"Oh, come on, you'd be interested in her, I know you like pretty blondes like me!" He teased, doing an exaggeratedly fake sexy pose. 

"You're assuming you're a pretty blonde." Sasuke grinned. Naruto made a noise of fake surprise, lifting a hand to his chest.

"You have hurt my lady-pride, Sasuke! How dare you!"

The young raven tried to suppress laughter by coughing. "Stop being such an idiot." He managed, between coughs.

"I will, if you open your heart to me~" The blonde chanted. 

"Shut up." Sasuke smirked.

After some minutes of bickering, Sasuke's phone beeped.

"Oh, who's that? Another fangirl? Your girlfriend? I knew you were a champ, Sasuke."

"Stop saying those things. It's neither. Just another text from my brother."

"Oh. I thought you had finally found someone to do gross things with!"  

Sasuke grunted in disgust, before putting his phone away.

"So what did he want?"

"What?" The raven said questioningly, as if he was distracted. 

"You know... Your bro. What did he say?" 

"It doesn't concern you." 

"You're hurting my kokoro, you know that, Sasuke?" The blonde pouted. 

"Hn."

"Quit that! Why don't you tell me? Am I not your friend?"

"Yes." 

"..." Naruto stared at the other boy with squinted eyes, waiting for a response. None came. Sighing, Naruto crossed his arms. "I hope your brother isn't as stuck-up and grumpy as you." 

"Don't you dare insult him." Sasuke glared at Naruto, before the latter grinned from ear to ear.

"Oooh, someone's got a brother complex!" He raised his voice, teasingly.

"Shut up dobe! I don't, I hate that bastard!" Naruto stopped in his tracks, raising an eyebrow and looking weirdly at Sasuke. Talk about mixed feelings. 

"Um... why?" 

After a few seconds, Sasuke huffed and crossed his arms. "He left years ago for no reason."

"You mean like... Left for college or something?" Sasuke nodded, but didn't elaborate. It still didn't make sense why he hated him.

"But why do you hate him then?" Suddenly leaving was probably a reason to be mad, but not to _hate_ someone, right?

"Because he's so damn _annoying,_ always making everyone think he's Mr. perfect; and damn right he is, but it's just  _so_ frustrating." Naruto blinked. Was Sasuke... ranting? "And he suddenly calls saying that he's coming home? After _four_  years? I just-" _  
_

"-woah-" Oh, boy. It sounded like he worshipped the guy. Sasuke was suffering a mix of brotherly-adoration, resentment and jealousy. 

"-don't understand who he thinks he is. He can't just come back as if nothing had happened! More so because he was forced to, only because his fucking roommate set their apartment on _fire-"_

 _"-_ What! Are you  _serious?_ _"_

"-and my parents are  _all over him_. I know that as soon as that apartment shit is sorted out he'll be leaving us again." The young raven clenched his fists. 

"Calm down, Sasuke. Why are you getting so worked up?"

"Because you asked!" 

"Okay, I'm sorry for prying."

"No, you're not." Naruto flinched.

"Okay, I'm not. I understand you're mad because you haven't seen him in ages. But i'm sure he's not-"

"No, don't you dare. If you fucking say it i'll shove your words down your throat."

"That's more like the Sasuke I know!" Naruto barked, as Sasuke shot him a glare. "...I wasn't gonna say anything, anyway." 

"That better be true." 

After some thought, Naruto remembered Sasuke's distressed look that Monday. “So that’s what you were so worried about on Monday?” Naruto mused. Seeing Sasuke like that was strange enough. His brother couldn't be that bad... He couldn't be worse than Sasuke, at least. 

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at him. “I swear, Naruto. Sometimes you seem like the dumbest and thickest plank in the world, but it’s times like these that you make me doubt.”

“…Thank you, I guess?”

“Congratulations, you just went back to being a dumb plank.”

“Hey! Stop insulting me!”

"Never. Your face practically begs me to insult you." 

 

After a while of talking, bickering and arguing about less stressful topics, they reached their stop and made their way out of the metro, avoiding the wave of people pushing themselves inside, and left the station. They walked a few more blocks until they arrived at Sasuke’s house, which was a huge, modern and stylish residence that had Naruto awestruck the first time he set foot in front of it.

Sasuke took out his key and turned it around, unlocking the door and opening it. Both boys took off their shoes and walked into the house; it was as if Naruto lived there, he knew it so well, and even had spare clothes in Sasuke’s room.

Naruto looked around, looking for someone else's presence. "He's probably in his room or something." Sasuke said. "It's better if he doesn't come downstairs. I’ll be down in a minute, I have to use the bathroom.”

“Alright, I’ll wait in the study. Though I’m kinda hungry.” Sasuke went upstairs, and Naruto made himself home by walking into the kitchen. He was hit with the delicious smell of something sweet, probably something being baked in the oven.

“Oh, nice! I wonder what it is.” He approached the oven, crouching down to look through the glass door. He inhaled once again, trying to identify the smell.

“It’s apple pie.” A clear, deep voice said, startling Naruto. He raised a hand to his chest after the scare, but squinted his eyes; he knew that voice from somewhere.

“Oh! I see-” He said, rising to his feet and turning around to face the person –Sasuke’s brother, it must’ve been (he really didn't expect to meet him so soon)-, and was met with the sight of the handsome raven-haired man he had been with almost a week ago in the amusement park. The boy’s eyes widened comically and his mouth fell open. Said man must have only realized who the blonde was in that moment too, since his eyes widened slightly.

“Naruto? Where are you?” Sasuke’s voice was heard coming from the hall, and soon the younger raven poked his head into the kitchen, narrowing his eyes at the sight of his brother. “Oh, there you are.”

Naruto looked from Sasuke to Itachi and then back to Sasuke, mentally hitting himself for not having made a connection between the two; they looked so fricking similar. Now he felt stupid. On the other hand, how could Sasuke call him a bastard? Itachi was fucking awesome! 

“I see you’ve met my brother.” Sasuke said venomously, approaching them. Naruto wanted to laugh and say that they had already met, but Itachi interrupted him.

“Hello, you must be my otouto’s best friend.” Naruto tilted his head, looking weirdly at the older man. What was going on? “My name is Itachi, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” He continued, smiling politely at the blonde. Why was he acting as if they had never seen each other?

Gaping at the man, Naruto frowned, trying to make sense of the situation, while Sasuke stared at him oddly with a raised eyebrow as he patted the tiled floor impatiently. 

“I-I’m Naruto, though you already know that…” Sasuke looked confused, but before he could speak, the older Uchiha took control of the situation yet again.

“Yes, my otouto shouted your name quite ungracefully before, didn’t he?” Itachi commented, with a chuckle.

"Aniki." Sasuke warned, glaring at him. Naruto raised an eyebrow; for someone having called his brother 'bastard', Sasuke was acting quite childishly.

"So you'll be working on a project and will then stay for the night?" The man inquired. Sasuke must've told him the details. 

"Yeah." Naruto awkwardly replied, looking down at the floor.  _What the hell, what the hell, what the hell?!_

The older raven looked over at Sasuke as he smirked. "Make sure not to break anything, you two. When my otouto was younger, he had a tendency of breaking things-"

"Itachi!" Sasuke interrupted, clearly embarrassed, trying to use an angry tone of voice but failing miserably. "That's not true!" He said behind gritted teeth, trying to compose himself. 

"Whatever you say, little brother." The older man dismissed him. “Well, if you’ll excuse me, I have to work on a few things. It was a pleasure, Naruto-san.” Naruto- _san_?! Ouch. He didn't know why, but that had hurt. A lot. 

Before the man could leave though, Sasuke spoke. “Are you joining us for dinner? I hope not."

“Maybe, who knows?”

And with that, the man was gone. Naruto turned sharply towards Sasuke, a confused and panicked expression on his face. Sasuke merely raised an eyebrow at him.

“What’s with you? You've been acting weird.”

“I-it's nothing.” He stuttered, awkwardly looking at the spot where the man had been standing just seconds ago. What. The. Fuck.

“Alright.” The young raven shrugged off the topic. “Let’s go, we have to finish the project.” Naruto nodded, following Sasuke into the study.

Shit. It was going to be a _horribly_ long weekend. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeeaaah, so, sorry for leaving it like that. I swear I didn't do it on purpose. More or less.  
> I hope you enjoyed!  
> Thank you for reading and don't forget to leave feedback!


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